The Olympics Is Starting to Get to Me

Image by: Flickr / Denise M

Even though I'm supposed to be a grumpy old cynic, I have to admit that, reluctantly, I'm getting just a tich excited about this Olympics thing.

Sure, it's outrageously expensive and we'll be paying for it for generations. Sure, it's a great big space ship of a spectacle that's going to land in our midst and take over our lives  for more than a month. And sure, it's turning the city into an armed camp where we're all treated like dangerous inmates in a Fascistic prison.

And frankly, I find the sports at the heart of this circus mostly boring and ridiculous. Okay, I might be thrilled by madness of skeleton racing, and the speed of most downhill skiing events, but generally, Olympic sports...uh....leave me cold.

What I do like about the Olympics is that the event has sparked an outpouring of creativity in the city. Some of it is directly related, such as the ever changing electronic wall at Robson Square outside the media centre, and the wonderful First Nations artwork that's being put up all over the city.  

And have you been in the downtown area such as Granville and Robson Streets lately? The creative spirit is almost magical. Is this really our Vancouver? Wish it would stay that way all the time.

Alternative Creativity

However, there's a ripple effect here. There is a lot of creativity happening that isn't directly related to the Olympics, but may be an indirect result of the zeitgeist around it.  For example, the alternative media centre that's been created for the world's bloggers, tweeters, and other digital media boffins by Vancouver's digital media community.

Then there's the contributions of dozens of individual artists, photographers, musicians, and other creative people who have picked up on the spirit and decided to create pieces to relect the city in which they've made their home.  

One of my favorite examples of this was a music video, VancouverCity, released just two days ago, by InnerLife Project, an ongoing musical project headed by composer Serge Chubinsky-Orlov. Featuring haunting singing by Linda Ganzini and video by Dan and David Newcome, it's an exquisite time-lapse view of the days and nights in the city.  

Watching it, I remembered why I moved here what seems like a hundred years ago. After the bleakness of Windsor, Ont. it was so refreshing. And energizing. And best of all, reflective of my hopes and dreams.

Creative pursuits like InnerLife Project show the best of the city, and make us forget all the bitching and complaining and sniping that is also, unfortunately, a feature of this city.

We've always been known as a city with a large Creative Class. Nice to see that now we're proving it to ourselves.  

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  • tony wanless, 
  • City and Government